𝖜𝖆𝖓𝖉𝖊𝖗𝖊𝖗 | ᴄᴏʀᴘꜱᴇ ʜᴜꜱʙᴀɴᴅ x ᴏᴄ | ʙᴏᴏᴋ ᴏɴᴇ

The Wanderer

"You know it's not healthy to be up there all alone..."

"Not alone, I've got the cat. And I like it here. It's quiet." Violet responded into the phone's receiver.

"Why are you isolating yourself this time?" Silence. "I know you like being on your own...you've gotten good at it. But...not talking to people for months at a time isn't good, Violet." But it was easier. Easier than putting on a hat for each individual who needed catering to, only to have them disappointed in the end anyway.

"I talk to you every week."

"Your virtual therapist doesn't count. While I'm glad you're here, interacting with me isn't the only option."

"Look, we've already talked about this." Violet sighed tiredly. And they had. Violet was a wanderer. Moving around during early childhood had given her a great sense of wanderlust and curiosity about the world. She'd had a few opportunities to study abroad, which had only fueled her desire to continue traveling once she graduated and got into freelance writing. But now that Covid had resulted in closed borders and job closures, Violet had settled in her grandparent's house outside of Seattle, holed up in a dinky town that offered the most comfort she'd had since childhood.

But even that had lost its comfort after a while of simmering in her own thoughts and depression. She couldn't deny that she was lonely and bored, even with finishing up her Master's. And for someone like her, that could get dangerous. She never knew what to do with this kind of free time, so busy with extra coursework or career projects or even attempting to entertain whoever made time for her. Now all she could motivate herself to do was scroll through Tiktok until 4 am.

"Have you heard from any of the companies?" One of the reasons she was getting her Master's was to do more content creation and editing, maybe even get into publishing. But her focus had been more in music, lyrics, and poetry, at least making her fairly flexible with the music industry.

"I um, I have an interview with a small music label," Violet told her therapist. She didn't have much hope, as her resume had been slipped in with a few dozen other applicants, and some of the relocation benefits seemed a little too good to be true. "Marketing admin or something."

"I know that's not what you're going for right now, but that's still in your field, right?" Violet nodded before answering aloud, used to Zoom rather than a phone call, but technology could fail sometimes.

"Yeah, working in music could be fun."

"Well, that wouldn't be boring at all."

"Yeah, we'll see. It's supposed to be remote, so I dunno how often I'll interact with anyone."

"Well, it definitely couldn't hurt to look at it with a new perspective."

---

Over a week later, Violet awoke from what she might have considered a nightmare or a stress dream, save for a few details her brain usually didn't throw in. She had been wading into the ocean, no doubt thinking about LA beaches, when a large wave had continued swooping up higher and higher, blue covering most of her vision, all but for a red hoodie and a mop of dark curls. The figure had turned to her with a wink, whispering words she couldn't quite make out.

The vivid colors still burned in her memories, Violet wrote some snippets down and drew an outline for her to finish later so she could recall the lucid dream. Then she checked her email only to find an email from the music company she'd interviewed for her. Heart in her throat, she read the contents quickly before taking a deep breath, not knowing why she was so excited for something she wasn't sure she wanted. But the words, 'we'd love to offer you the position of...' filled her with such relief, she couldn't remember why she was anxious in the first place.

"Hey, thanks for taking the time to chat." Violet's new manager told her over the phone. His relaxed tone eased her nerves further as she sat at her desk to take more notes for all the plans they'd be going over before her first day. "First things first, we are moving to a hybrid schedule since Covid mandates are being lifted a bit." Violet was grateful to be on a phone call rather than Zoom or Skype so she could hide her grimace of disappointment.

"Ok, define hybrid." As much as she loved traveling, having to pick up and move all the time was getting exhausting.

"We've seen a lot of productivity working remotely, but some people need to be in with recording starting up again, so we ended up deciding that coming in on Fridays for group meetings or project presentations would be helpful for the office culture."

"Oh, okay." She kept her tone high and inquisitive as she rolled her eyes before writing down, MOVE, and automatically thinking of all the details that went into it.

"Uh, your resume says you're in Seattle right now?"

"Yeah, I'd have to relocate."

"We do have relocation benefits," her manager told her. "We cover moving vans and those fees, and some move-in deposits and fees." Okay, so that was at least a few less things for her to worry about. But still. Moving. Again. Just for one day in the office. "Will that give you enough leeway? Or should we extend your start date?"

"No, um..." Violet didn't want to give them any reason to rescind their offer; the starting pay was already better than expected for LA, and they appeared to be generous enough with their benefits, helping her move was only the start of flexible PTO, health insurance, and even more. Maybe one day in the office wouldn't be too bad. Even if she wasn't used to the scorching summers there anymore, being by the beach couldn't be too bad.

Violet decided to fly down to LA for a week before her new start date to look at apartments before officially starting her new position at the production firm. She wanted to get everything squared away in hopes of balancing out the stress of moving and starting a new job. But as much as she tried to prepare, things wouldn't always go her way.

Even with the stipends from the company, LA was expensive, and she was doing her best to keep away from too far downtown. Growing up there had given her a different perspective on the city, and while a lot could change in 15 years (including her), some things stayed exactly the same. She knew how to handle herself here. This was some of the most familiar territory for her, but there was still so much to explore. So she spent her evenings along the boardwalks, gazing at the stunning houses far out of her price range. One night she'd even taken a 6-pack of cider to the beach to write for a few hours before returning to her hotel room.

One evening, she'd opted for a dive bar a little further into the city, looking around neighborhoods that were a bit nicer if just a bit out of her price range. It was a great location to work though, she wouldn't have to worry about a car with such easy access to public transport and walking distance to bodegas and restaurants. It reminded her of her old neighborhood in Brooklyn, though this area was a bit cheaper, thank Christ. The only matter was finding an apartment that wasn't overpriced for being an absolute cellar.

So a few drinks in, she began searching her renting apps, sending emails, and trying to look at application processes and fees that had thankfully started to lower thanks to new housing laws that had been rewritten during the pandemic. A blunt would definitely be in order later.